Q. Tell me about the day and the emotions of winning your first match.
AVERY ZWEIG: Well, we knew going into it when they settled the bracket that this was going to be a very tough out. Aside from the fact that it's the first match, because match play and match play tournaments are very much about momentum, and you want that momentum to be swinging your way. So it's really important that you start off well. When we saw we were paired with Stasi and Ms. Woodard, we knew it was going to be a very tough match for two people that are as experienced as they are.
For me, I tried to look at it like I was fortunate to be playing with such good players rather than thinking the bracket could have settled another way because we were tied for first, so we knew it was going to be tough, and the front nine was brutal, honestly. It was playing so difficult.
They got off to a hot start, and we were just lucky enough to hang on, and we knew that this stretch, really 9 through 12, was going to be -- 9 through 13 was going to be extremely difficult, and that's where pars would win. We've been really good about that, so that's what I was looking forward to all day, and I'd say we handled that pretty well.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah, obviously going into a match with two players who have a lot more match play experience than I think both of us combined.
AVERY ZWEIG: And best ball experience.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah, I personally don't have a lot of match play or four-ball experience, but getting to play with Avery is probably one of the highlights, and I went in with the same mindset as her where I was just lucky to be out there and just to play, so I think we definitely had a great day, and we executed very well.
Q. You mentioned not a lot of experience, but experience doesn't seem to matter if you play good golf, right?
AVERY ZWEIG: Yes. Yeah, but match play is very much strategy, which that's not really an earth-shattering revelation, but any experience that you have, particularly with USGA events, because the way -- this course is already difficult by itself. And the way they set it up, it's a whole different level. So there's way more strategy involved.
It takes a lot of trust between the two of us because I may go for a green and she doesn't or I may take a more aggressive play. So there's a lot of communication going on, and I think that's one of our strengths because our families and Gianna and I were friends prior to teaming up. So we have that comfort level, and I think that's been really helpful.
Q. How did you guys hook up and decide to be teammates? How did that come about?
AVERY ZWEIG: Well, we've known each other since -- gosh, I think I was seven or eight and she was maybe six, and it was a practice round at a U.S. Kids tournament and I had an ear infection, so it was not a pleasant practice round. But we met then, so we've known Gianna and watched each other play, and now we're kind of playing on the same level as far as like national junior events and amateur events.
And there was this one practice round last year in January, the Sally. It's a big amateur tournament in Ormond Beach. I'm sure you know about it. This practice round we played together because we were friends, and my dad and I were trying to figure out who I was going to play with, and he was like, Shoot, Gianna is like really good.
Not that we thought otherwise, but -- so that's when we decided that once my previous partner graduated that Gianna and I were going to play together.
I really do think the friendship aspect of it has been beneficial to us.
Q. Gianna, you're from Warren, Ohio, right?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yes.
Q. 8th hole seemed to be a pretty big tee. Can you tell me about that, the par-3? You guys were one down and tied the match.
AVERY ZWEIG: Yeah, so that was my birdie. So Gianna had -- I played pretty bad on the first four holes, so Gianna, we had carded her score, and then hole 5 and 6 we carded mine, so I started to feel a little bit better.
We were still kind of trying to get the groove about it, and Dawn and Meghan were hitting some great shots.
On 8, I actually didn't hit a very good tee shot. It was a tucked back left pin, and the wind gusted right as I hit, so it pushed it to the right. So I had about a 35-footer over a mound. Obviously didn't look at it and didn't think this was going to go in, and Gianna missed the green left, so I knew that I needed to two-putt.
I think Dawn, she was a little further than me but on relatively the same line, so I got to see her roll it. I don't know what happened, but something clicked with that putt, and, I mean, it looked like it was going in from 10 feet out.
When that happened, again, I cannot say it enough, match play is all about momentum. When that happened, I knew that we needed to ride that good momentum out as long as we could, and it couldn't have happened at a better time because we were fully aware that holes 9 through 12 were just going to be crucial because they were playing so difficult.
I remember being very adamant about -- and my father -- we all are kind of aware of the standing and what's going on. I remember being very adamant about expressing to Gianna, like you have to ride this out, like keep making par, par is a good score.
From then on, the momentum never really switched from us and we always had the box, so that was really big.
Q. Talk about making par at 12, the chip-in.
AVERY ZWEIG: That was 10.
Q. What happened?
AVERY ZWEIG: Well, 12 was also a key par, but if you're talking about hitting the flagstick, that was 10.
Q. Who did that, Gianna?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: That was Avery.
AVERY ZWEIG: Yeah, so 10 was one of the most difficult if not the most difficult hole on the course, and Meghan had -- let's see, it was like a 40-footer uphill, so we knew that was going to be a par and Gianna had a difficult chip out and I was on a downslope.
The wind was my friend there. I was into the wind but I was above the hole, difficult shot. So I opened the face a little bit with my lob wedge and carried it on. It had some spin, but it had quite a bit of speed and it hit the hole and went to like three feet away.
That was like just -- those par saves ensured that the match didn't switch, so it was always in our favor and we always had the box. That was a big deal.
Gianna and I both did that. I mean, like 11 -- yeah, 11 you made a good par, 12 -- 12 we wound up carding my score, but I think you would have made your putt.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah, I had an uphill putt.
AVERY ZWEIG: Actually 13 was a really good putt by Gianna, so I don't know if you want to hear about that.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Well, I don't think any of us hit the best drivers possible out of the four of us, but I probably hit the worst one. I actually hit a perfect approach shot right where I was aiming it, and I knew I probably didn't have a chance to get it on the green, but unfortunately it didn't bounce right like I expected it to, and I hit a perfect chip shot to like five feet, maybe a little bit less than that, and it was a really good up-and-down to make the five-footer coming back.
Q. I heard that you hit it close at 14. That's what the ladies were saying. Gianna hit it close at 14.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah, that was my second hole-in-one of my lifetime. I actually thought it was going to go in again. Yeah, but she made a hole-in-one yesterday and we were fully 4-under on that hole in three days, so I guess we like it.
Q. 4-under on that hole? That's funny. Do you feel pretty good about your chances going forward?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: I do, yeah.
AVERY ZWEIG: I do. I think we're going to let this sink in for a little bit, maybe go get some ice cream, some Tiff Treats. I said yesterday after we got medalist, I told Gianna, like the second we get off of this property this is behind us, because your seeding does matter, but anyone who makes the cut in this has a good chance to win, and there is such a thing as upsets.
You have to really stay in the present. So we'll let this soak in for a few hours, get a good night's rest, and then come back and get ready to play. Does that sound good, Gianna?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yes.
Q. You guys are probably not intimidated having played such an experienced team. Whoever you face next, you're not going to be intimidated by them?
AVERY ZWEIG: I mean, we played pretty good today, and I think I can speak for the both of us that we're pretty confident in our games. I'm definitely not as intimidated as I was.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah. Intimidation is dependent on how you look at it. I mean, it was great to play against Meghan, and anyone we face from now on is going to be worthy after winning one match. So it's not going to be easy, but I like our chances.
AVERY ZWEIG: They rented out an ice cream machine in the player room, and it's vanilla, and then they have Tiff Treats today, but the last two days they had a wall of doughnuts. Yeah, so it's pretty great.
Q. The last two days what?
AVERY ZWEIG: They had a wall of doughnuts. Like not the entire wall, but a pretty large-sized thing with all doughnuts on it, and I had never seen that before. But definitely completed something that was on my bucket list.
Q. What are your handicaps, by the way? What do you guys carry?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Oh, gosh, I honestly have no idea.
AVERY ZWEIG: Well, the ranking -- so the ranking system, we're like really next -- we're like within 10 spots of each other, I think, and we're both around plus 3½. It says minus 3½, but that's -- and then my handicap recently -- the previous one takes a year of scores and the handicap system obviously only takes your last 25 or best 20 rounds.
I think with that one I'm like 4½ -- plus 4½ or 5. She's probably around that, too. We don't really track that, though.
Q. That sounds pretty good.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Yeah, we'd have to give a lot of strokes in a club championship, that's for sure.
Q. What are your home clubs?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: I live in Florida in the winter and Ohio in the summer, and in Florida I play out of Bonita Bay. They have courses spread out all over Florida, and in Ohio I play out of Avalon Lakes, and they also have a bunch of courses that are spread out.
AVERY ZWEIG: I'm actually from McKinney, which is about 25 minutes north of here, so I play at TPC Craig Ranch. They're about to host the Byron Nelson, so that's exciting.
Q. I take it you guys, you've booked Gianna for the week, Avery?
GIANNA CLEMENTE: I think so.
Q. Is she staying with you?
AVERY ZWEIG: No, she's not staying with us. We have two cats and a dog who I talk about a lot, who I can't go three holes without talking about, and they actually have really bad pet allergies, so I don't know if that would be conducive to good performance.
I wish they would stay with us, but apparently they're too good.
GIANNA CLEMENTE: Sure.
Q. In between making pars you talk about your dogs?
AVERY ZWEIG: Yeah, we try to keep it light.
Q. Sure. I would talk about my dogs. I talk about them all the time.
AVERY ZWEIG: Yeah, they're great. Man's best friend.
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